Amanda’s steps felt heavy as she walked back toward her father’s house. She had spent so many years fighting the bitterness inside her that this moment felt surreal. It had taken a whirlwind of emotion, a plan of revenge, and the bitter taste of betrayal to finally make her face her father again after all those years.
The house looked exactly the same. The front yard was neatly trimmed, the white picket fence still as pristine as it was during her childhood. But for Amanda, every inch of it was a reminder of the man who had abandoned her and her mother when she was just an infant. Her fists clenched at her sides as she stood at the doorstep, feeling the weight of everything she wanted to say.
Earlier that week, Amanda had discovered a photo in the newspaper—a photo of her father, Robert, with his new fiancée, Clara. It brought up all the old pain, all the memories of her mother, who had struggled to care for Amanda after Robert left. The moment her eyes landed on that photo, the anger that had been buried for years resurfaced. Her father had promised he’d always be there, yet he’d disappeared without a word, leaving them to fend for themselves.
Her first instinct was to destroy him. To ruin his new relationship the way he had ruined hers and her mother’s. So, she had devised a plan—slip into his house, plant something that would cause a rift between him and his fiancée, and watch it all fall apart. But now, as she stood outside his door, that plan seemed less satisfying than it had before.